Role of the medical history — Donor screening and laboratory testing of donated blood prior to transfusion are intended to ensure that recipients receive the safest possible blood products. Uniform donor medical history criteria ensure that similar donor screening occurs regardless of the collection facility. While laboratory testing is highly effective at removing units with the potential to transmit infection from the blood supply, the donor medical history makes additional contributions to reducing these and other complications of blood transfusion. (See "Blood donor screening: Laboratory testing".)

Examples include reducing the risk of the following:

●Infection with an organism for which blood is not tested (eg, malaria)

●Exposure to a medication with teratogenic potential (eg, isotretinoin)

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